Australian Energy Suppliers Call For More Government Support For EVs

Tesla Australia’s Heath Walker told TMR last week that the carmaker is holding “regular” meetings with government representatives about the future of electric vehicles in Australia.

According to Walker, the talks are ongoing and include discussion about the new Tesla Energy venture, however the carmaker wants to be self-sufficient in Australia regardless.

While Tesla may be willing to go it alone, other carmakers have arguably withheld EV or plug-in hybrid models from Australia due to, amongst other things, the lack of government support and charging infrastructure.

And now, the Energy Suppliers Association of Australia (ESAA) has called on state and federal governments to get behind electric vehicles.

In a report commissioned by the ESAA and researched by Energeia, just three in every 10,000 passenger cars sold in Australia feature an electric motor.

This compares to more than 800 in 10,000 from Norway, which is considered to be a world leader in the uptake of EVs to the point where the all-electric Nissan Leaf has managed to top the monthly sales charts.

The report claims high purchase costs are a major hurdle Australian buyers face when considering an EV, and that government subsidies could boost interest and sales. 

Plug-In Hybrids